Reverse
by Sivan IXXX
Summary: Archie can't figure it out. Veronica is clueless, Kevin is in the dark, and Juggy's cryptic movie cliches aren't any help either. Betty is slipping away from him, slowly but surely, and he doesn't know what to do. She says everything is fine, but he knows better. Genre is also romance. Eventual Barchie.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: My goodness I have no idea why I'm writing this. I don't want to call it a story, because I don't know how long it's going to be. It might end up being a one-shot, it might be ten chapters. We'll see how it goes.**

 **It'll mostly center on Betty (who's my favorite character), Archie, and the supporting cast members will make frequent appearances of course. The point of view from which the story is told will change from time to time.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters, or any other elements familiar to the Archie Comics or the CW series Riverdale. I do own the characters unfamiliar to the series and the storyline is purely original and separate from the show and comic book.**

* * *

 **Part I**

Maybe it was in the way she carried herself. Maybe it was how frequently she checked her ponytail for stray hairs, or reapplied her Cherry Blush lip balm. Or maybe it was all in his head.

Maybe it wasn't. The way she walked with an extra pep in her step, how she bounced a little bit more, or how her skin seemed to be extra flawless and fresh whenever he saw her.

Everything was just...more.

Her brilliant blue eyes had always had a subtle glimmer, but now it was a blazing fire. Her smiles were wider, her laugh was louder, and even her articles in the school paper had changed. He knew there was a not-so-perfect side to his best friend, and she expressed it through her writing medium. But even the little bit of ice he could sense in her style was gone.

He had never really been interested in gawking across the way, through his window, and into her world that was her bedroom. But with these subtle cues, his curiosity was piqued.

There wasn't anything out of the ordinary in her routine: plan her outfit the night before, make sure there weren't any stains or smells, exercise a little before a shower and the bed. In the morning, however, there was the _one_ thing that caused further interest into her change in behavior.

Her mirror. She had never used the full length mirror she had hidden in her closet. It was a gift from Polly, and also a grim reminder.

The stigma behind it had apparently faded away. The bubbly blonde was actually _dancing_ and admiring her reflection. She had never danced before. He didn't take her to be that type, and he had known her his whole life. The questions began to swarm in his mind.

Had she gotten a new pet? Was her mother pregnant? Did she get early offers to a prestigious college? Was Polly making progress? What was going on?

When he got to school, he tried to act as if everything was fine. He didn't comment on her woodsy, light perfume (which she had never worn before, or he had never noticed) when they hugged. Even _that_ felt different; brief, not as intense, and even awkward. It felt as though she didn't want to touch him.

He asked her how she was doing, and she was quick to reply with "Great!" And he could tell she was being honest; she was great. Her being happy was not the issue; it was _why_ she was happy. What factored into the joy that she could barely contain in her body?

They had all the same classes, so he watched her in English. Mr. Peterman droned on as usual, and she paid rapt attention as usual, jotting down notes in her spiral-bound notebook. Just when he thought that everything was fine (and she was just _happier,_ period), she turned to the back of her notebook and began drawing something. And that something made her eyes light up, and a wide, toothy grin spread across her face.

Whatever it was, the red headed boy's reaction to it was immediate. Suddenly his ears felt hot, and his palms were sweaty. Something was going on, and he didn't know what it was.

"Mr. Andrews, since Ms. Cooper is such a distraction for you today, why don't you sit towards the front of the class, where you can focus?" Mr. Peterman said. The entire class turned to face him, and Betty's face held a pink tint of embarrassment as her blues eyes searched his for an answer.

He couldn't look at her straight in the eye; he had been watching her all morning, like a creepy stalker, or some busybody, which he wasn't.

 _I'm just being a friend_ he reminded himself as he gathered his things. He knew she was going to ask later, so he had to be ready to answer her questions.

History class had assigned seating, and Ms. Horton had made it a point to break up everyone she knew were friends, so that they could get their work done. Betty sat towards the front and close to the door, and he sat closer to the window. That made it hard to see what she was doing, _without_ the teacher noticing.

Sighing, he tried to think of something. He tore a piece of paper out of his notepad, then tore a small square, and scribbled something on it: 'WHAT'S BETTY DOING? DON'T TELL HER I ASKED' He passed it to Karen Smalls, the quiet brunette with glasses. She read it, wrinkled her nose a little, and casually glanced over in the blonde's direction before writing on the paper and passing it back: 'SITTING THERE WITH A GOOFY SMILE ON HER FACE. WHY?'

He felt his temperature rising as he wrote: 'IS SHE DRAWING IN HER NOTEBOOK?' Karen took it again, looked at Betty, then wrote down her response: 'NO. YOU HOPING SHE'S DAYDREAMING ABOUT YOU?'

'NO WAY. SHE'S MY FRIEND AND I'M WORRIED ABOUT HER.'

'HOW SWEET. YOU HAVE NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT. SHE JUST HAS A LOVE BUG.' That dreaded L word made his heart thud in his chest. Surely Karen was joking.

'YOU'RE JOKING ABOUT THE LOVE BUG, RIGHT?'

'THERE'S NO WAY SHE'S THINKING ABOUT A CAT WITH STARS IN HER EYES. NOW PAY ATTENTION, ARCHIE.'

No way. There was _no_ way she was thinking about someone else.

He chewed on his bottom lip. But...if it was a guy, who? Reggie? Chuck? Juggy? His mind was racing. He tore another square.

'IS THERE A-'

"Archibald Andrews, could you please go to the main office for the remainder of the class? History may be boring to you, but I do think Karen would like to pay attention," Ms. Horton droned. Archie put his pencil down on the desk.

"Ms. Horton, I-"

"No excuses. Go." A few of his classmates chuckled as he put his things in his backpack. Once again, Betty stared at him with an intensity he couldn't return when he opened the class door and left.

.

Lunch time came quickly, and Archie had to manage to keep cool long enough to get Betty's attention off of him. Veronica and Kevin were the first to get to the table. Juggy liked to eat outside and away from everyone; he claimed the cafeteria smelled like teenage hormones.

"Are you okay, Archie?" She hadn't even bothered to touch her burger and fries yet. His stomach was in knots; he had hardly touched his own food. Veronica and Kevin were busy rattling on about a pair of shoes they saw on TV, so it was just him and her.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he answered too quickly.

"Archie..." she started off. He knew his answer wouldn't be good enough. "I've known you since we were kids. I know _you_ , especially when something is off. You disrupted two different classes, one time being because you were looking at me. What's going on?"

"Nothing, Betty. It's nothing," he replied, slipping a fry into his mouth. "It-it's just that...you've been acting different."

"I have?" She hadn't even noticed, and he was starting to feel dumb for revealing his concern that shouldn't even exist.

"I just...noticed that you've been really happy lately."

She pursed her lips and squinted her eyes. He hated when she cocked her head to the side. "And...that's an issue?"

"No, it's not. I just...noticed." He hadn't looked up from his food yet.

"Archie, look at me." He steadied his breath before lifting his head and looking right into her cerulean gaze. " _I'm_ fine. You're fine. Now stop getting yourself in trouble for nothing." Betty reassured him with one of her thousand-megawatt smiles before she started on her food.

Archie tried to regain his appetite by eating a few fries, but he couldn't eat much more than that. He hadn't even noticed that Veronica and Kevin had finished their conversation and now the dark haired girl was staring at him.

"You okay Archiekins?"

"Yeah, you look like someone just kicked your dog," Kevin added.

Archie glanced at Betty, who was eating her lunch with unusual vigor. She was careful, but quick. He hadn't noticed she ate so fast. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little tired, is all."

"Hey Betty, how's your new article going? About the locker room pervert?" Veronica asked.

"It's going great, Ronnie," she replied, wiping her mouth with her napkin. Archie internally rolled his eyes. She used 'great' to describe everything, lately. "We still don't have anything but Gretchen's missing bra and the green paint on her locker. Speaking of which, I have to go. See you guys." Betty got up, grabbed her tray and emptied its contents into the nearby trash. And she was gone, without so much as a glance at Archie.

When she was well out of earshot, the red head leaned forward towards his remaining friends, "Is it just me, or is Betty acting weird?"

* * *

 **And that's a wrap for the first part! I thought I would do a one-shot, because I didn't have any material to stretch it out, but despite having a cold, I figured something out. Betty has a new story to cover, involving a locker room pervert. The Jason Blossom murder is on the back burner for now, because I want to see how it plays out on the show. I don't know what route they're going to take with it, and I'd rather not mess that up horribly.**

 **I hope I portrayed everyone accurately. For the most part, this chapter was told from Archie's perspective, although third person in nature. There will be more dialogue in the next part, and more fictional characters I created to fill in the gaps. Looks like Archie is getting a little jealous of whatever it is that's taking Betty's attention away from him.**

 **Please do review and let me know what you think! I'm open to suggestions, comments and criticism.**

 **Also: For those of you that follow my Assassin's Creed stories, I updated Shadows finally, if you're still interested in reading it.**


	2. Authors Note: Expect a New Chapter Soon

**Thank you all for reviewing and reading my Riverdale story! I didn't think it'd get any hits since it seems like there are a lot of Bugghead fans, especially after episodes 6 and 7. I don't know what path my story will take but I most definitely will try to update it in the next week since I'll have some time to write. It'll be posted as the third link for this story when you click on the right arrow to keep reading chapters. Once the story is completely finished I'll remove this note and the potential others like it. Stay tuned for part two soon!**

 **Cheers,**

 **Sivan**


	3. Chapter 2

**A/N: I'm so sorry for taking so long to update! I was waiting for Riverdale to finish the season before I wrote the next chapter. I didn't want to repeat anything from the last few episodes, because I want what I have in mind to be original. Plus, I've had major writer's block.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own the CW series Riverdale, or the comic series. However, all characters unfamiliar to the show and series are purely original and belong to me.**

* * *

 **Chapter Two: De Moribus**

"What do you mean weird? She's always been bubbly like that. I'm actually really glad, with what's going on with Polly and all that," the raven-haired girl lowered her voice at the end.

Archie remembered Polly Cooper quite well: tall, blonde, and Jason's ex-girlfriend that was now in a group home. He had been so occupied with his music, that he had forgotten about Betty's concern over her sister's well-being.

 _Some best friend_ he scolded himself. "Yeah, it is a good thing she's staying afloat." His honey brown eyes focused on the seat that his blonde-haired friend had just vacated, which triggered a curious look from Kevin. His eyes said it all.

xxx

Archie noticed that the one time Betty ate her food inhumanly fast and then sprinted off to the Blue and Gold office, had become more of a ritual. Ronnie and Kevin didn't seem to mind; they had plenty to talk about between the two of them. Plus, Ronnie was dating some guy on the football team named Josh, and Kevin had Joaquin.

That left Jughead.

"Hey Jug, you got a minute?"

"If it doesn't involve a slew of questions about the habits of a certain blonde, then yes." Archie hesitated to speak, and Juggy rolled his eyes, sighing, "Of course we can talk about Betty, not that I'd be much help."

"Has she been acting weird since you started working with her at the school paper?"

"Not any weirder than any other teenage girl. What makes you think she's acting differently?"

"I-I dunno, she's wearing perfume, she's always smiling, and lipstick—she only wears lipstick for like, parties and stuff."

"Then…you think that Betty is doing this for some guy?"

"Yes," he answered quickly. "No," his voice dropped. "Maybe. I don't know."

Juggy laughed, chomping into his burger (of course). "How sweet—you're worried your friend is dating and she's not telling you."

"What do you think, Jug? With everything I've told you?"

"I think I'm the _last_ person you'd want to ask about what goes on in the adolescent mind of a girl. I detect being asexual and _quite_ content in my future. But Betty is different; she's a childhood friend. If you suspect she's dating, then why not just ask her?"

"I don't want her to think…I'm jealous," he mumbled, scratching the back of his head.

"The red-headed boy-next-door is having a cruel twist of fate? Rather than being the desired one, you have become the desiring person? Hilarious."

"Absolutely not. I just don't want Betty getting involved in something she can't handle."

"Archibald Andrews, a boyfriend is _nothing_ compared to investigating the murder of a teenage boy. You're just a little peeved because she's not focused on you anymore." Archie glared at him, and the raven-haired teen chuckled. "I guess that's a little too close to home for you."

xxx

The next time he saw her, he was on his way to the bathroom. She hadn't seen him because she was too occupied with her phone to notice anyone in the hall.

He hid in between a doorway and the lockers, and strained his ears to listen to her phone call.

"…it wasn't like last time…"

Silence. She grinned, a goofy look on her face.

"I had fun too…"

Silence.

"…I miss you…" her soft, kitten-like tone sent his heart into a flurry. She definitely wasn't talking to a relative with _that_ voice.

So it _is_ a guy, he concluded.

"…not until winter break? Okay."

Silence.

"…introduce you to my friends…"

Archie tuned out of the conversation. He felt sick inside.

He wasn't jealous.

He _wasn't_ jealous.

He was not jealous. Whoever this guy was occupying his friend's heart and mind, he didn't want to meet him. There was no telling what would happen, how he would react.

The red head no longer had to use the bathroom; he needed to talk to someone.

"Ronnie." It was now lunch time, and Betty had just done her customary dash for the Blue and Gold office.

She was preoccupied with making goo-goo eyes with Josh from across the cafeteria. He didn't know why Josh didn't sit with them at least sometimes. The local jock population wouldn't have missed him.

"Yeah, Arch?"

"Betty has a boyfriend."

"Yeah. So?"

His heart thudded loudly in his chest. "You knew? Were you keeping it secret from me?"

"Not my secret to tell, Ginger. Us girls don't announce it to the world when we're dating, and it is relationship sabotage when trolls discover you have a new boyfriend. Betty is my girl; I'm glad she found someone, and I don't want anyone messing this up for her." She gave him a pointed look. "She needs us to be supportive."

"I will be," the words felt forced, sticky like maple syrup in his throat. Thankfully, the raven-haired girl didn't notice. "I heard he's coming to visit during winter break. Do you know his name?"

"Yes. His name is Quinn. And that's all I'm telling. If there's anything else you want to know, you have to ask Betty. He's not _my_ boyfriend."

xxx

The walk home was awkward, and it felt like the street just kept going on and on. His house _still_ wasn't in sight?

Betty kept asking him questions, how music was going, football, college aspirations and the like. He made sure to answer them, but he couldn't take his mind off of this mystery guy, Quinn.

"Earth to Archie? Hello?" Her chilled hand from the autumn air touched his forearm, and he returned to the moment. "Are you okay? You've been in space the whole time we've been talking."

"Maybe that's what I want to do—be an astronaut," he joked, trying to ease the tension.

"Archie, you love music too much. Who would listen to you play?" she laughed. "But seriously, Arch, you've been acting strange. Are you okay?"

He felt like he was betraying her and Quinn already, but he had to come clean. He had always been honest with his best friend.

"When…I was on my way to the bathroom, I heard you on the phone. It sounded like you were talking to a…guy." He could feel sweat escaping from all over his body. His head felt hot, despite the cool breeze in the air.

Betty remained silent for a few moments. "You heard my conversation?"

"…not all of it. Just bits and pieces. Ronnie told me his name is Quinn…your boyfriend. And she didn't give me his name without me asking. I know you guys protect one another."

"Yeah, his name is Quinn. He lives in Springdale."

"You're not mad about me snooping?"

"Archie, I was going to tell you today, on the walk home. I didn't feel comfortable at first, because of the whole Grundy situation."

He shook his head, his mind flooding with the memories of that experience. He had visited a therapist for the whole month of October. She told him he had been manipulated, used. The word 'rape' never left Dr. Breaux's mouth, but she had a vague way of implying that that is what happened. He was in disbelief, but in time, he realized that he was a victim. There was nothing 'cool' about breaking the law with an educated professional, who should've known better.

He had learned his lesson. "Grundy is the last thing on my mind right now. It's like you said, she was dragging me into a dark, isolated place. Now I have time to focus on my friends, and what's going on with you guys. I'm glad you found someone. Is he coming to visit in a couple of weeks?"

"Yes," she beamed. She could barely contain her excitement. "He has some time off."

Archie was confused. "Time off?"

He hadn't realized that they made it to her house, and that there was a stranger sitting on her stairs.

His blood turned to ice and he froze in place.

Betty focused her sights on the stranger.

"Quinn?"

xxx

 **And that's the end of the chapter! I know I went on a long delay in getting this chapter out, but I had major writer's block. Like seriously. I couldn't think of how to progress the story without it being too wordy. This is meant to be a short story, no more than five to ten chapters. So I don't want to saturate it with plot, and then leave it hanging in the end. Plus, I don't want to basically shadow and rewrite the first season with the relationships we saw play out (Arch x Val, Bughead, etc.) I like creating fresh ideas. The show is great, but writing something new affords opportunities to really expand on their personalities, and the universe they live in.**

 **Anyway, if I ever delay this long again, it's because I have writer's block. I'm not neglecting the story, and I haven't forgotten about it. I need something to occupy my mind for the next dreadful 4 months until season 2 airs. We all have anxiety over Papa Andrew's shooting.**

 **The next chapter will immediately follow up, no time jumps or anything. That comes later. Prepare yourselves for more Achie envy!**

 **-SivanIXXX**


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